St. Patrick’s Day event brings in the green for Boys & Girls Club

Building Community is a year-long initiative to highlight aspects of the community that contribute to our sense of belonging, and foster new connections as a result.

By Jim Callahan beacon-villager@wickedlocal.com

There was music, good food, smiling faces and laughs all around, interspersed with pats on the back and warm hugs. And amid all the good cheer, there was an important message accompanied by a sincere thank you.

The message, spoken at state Rep. Kate Hogan’s St. Patrick’s Day Celebration March 10, focused on the Boys & Girls Club of Assabet Valley and the need to provide funding for the club so it can sustain the many programs it offers. The thank you went out to the nearly 200 attendees at the event, held at the Maynard Golf Course.

Hogan, who has been hosting the event for the past seven years, spoke briefly about the club, the programs it offers and the children it serves from different backgrounds.

“Providing mentors who build relationships with the youngsters and help them develop leadership skills is so important,” she said.

A good bargain

Children pay $40 per year to come to the Boys & Girls Club, which operates year-round Monday through Friday, but it costs about $800 per year to support the various programs for each child. As a result, support comes from grants and fundraisers. The St. Patrick’s Day Celebration is one of the leading fundraising events, along with the club’s golf tournament, road race and annual banquet, held each year in November.

Nikki Tyler, director of operations for the Boys & Girls Club, said the club provides programming for toddlers, youth and young adults, up to the age of 18. There’s an after-school program during the school year and a summer program when schools let out. The after-school program supports 100 or so youngsters, while the summer session offers programming for upwards of 250.

While the Boys & Girls Club is well-known for its sports offerings, especially basketball, it provides a lot more.

“We have a play room for the young kids, homework room for the older kids and a computer center,” she said. “And one of the things that we’re especially proud of is our counselor-in-training (CIT) program.”

The CIT program, for children 13 to 18, gives participants the opportunity to work with club staff and build confidence through mentoring and volunteer opportunities and by developing job-ready skills.

“It’s a great way to keep the older kids involved and gives them something to look forward to, while also helping them to develop leadership skills. Many communities across the country struggle with finding things to do for kids in the 13-to-18 age bracket,” she added. “This is one way to address that.”

High-level learning

Additionally, high school and college teachers have volunteered their time at the club to augment the members’ learning. One, a Wellesley College professor, taught a class on robotics, and high school teachers have conducted art classes. There are also groups designated specifically for girls and boys.

The former, named "Smart Girls," is designed to empower girls and provide life lessons about being successful and making good decisions.

The other, named "Passport to Manhood," helps young boys in the often-difficult transition from the early teen years to young adult.

While there are additional fees for the summer programs, which include once-a-week field trips to places like Purgatory Chasm and Canobie Lake Park, the $40 membership fee is standard for the rest of the year.

“And no family is turned away if they can’t meet that payment,” said Jenn Kuo, director of development. “We’ll always find a way to help them.”

Jim Fairweather, chairman of the board of directors for the Boys & Girls Club, highlighted the recent successes of the Maynard High boys basketball team, calling attention to the fact that many of the players competed at one time or another at the Assabet Valley club.

“And we provide so much more for the kids who, if we weren’t there, would not have a place to go or things to do,” he said.

Fairweather was instrumental in restarting the club in 1996 after it had been shut down for five years, and he has managed it ever since. The club now has 1,000 members and provides services to the towns of Acton, Bolton, Concord, Maynard, Stow and Sudbury.

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